buddhist blog on writing, photography, teaching, life - with the aim to open inside spaces.

Friday, April 09, 2010

Fog Gone

It's a clear morning. The snow seems to have passed, and it's not raining anymore. The sun poured into our bedroom for the first time in a week or so, waking us on the earth's current clock.

It's funny - there's actually very little to say. I am well-rested but tired. My overloaded quarter is caught up for now - the 70+ people I have interacted with this week, in person or online, as students are fading into weekend memory for now. I am primed to coordinate a meditation weekend, with 13 or so more lovely folks. An embarrassment of riches. As I type, Aviva overlooks the keyboard as if to make sure I am choosing the right words. Gently, she reminds me to watch the crankiness - let open appreciation fill the space you feel now.

Last night I felt worn down, exhausted, overwhelmed still. Full of my own and others' pain and insights. Now comes time to digest, and space helps that.

This is what Carolyn Gimian sent out today as a quote from Chogyam Trungpa, and taking a break from writing this, I went to read it. Yes, that's exactly it:

PROBLEMS ARE CREATIVE OPPORTUNITIES

Once a person is involved with meditation practice and with working on the spiritual path, then the problems encountered in engaging with society are not hang-ups anymore. They are creative opportunities. Those everyday-life situations become part of meditation practice. The situation slows you down, or the situation pushes you. It depends on how much you engage. If you are too engaged, then something will slow you down. If you are not involved enough, there will be some reminder that pushes you to get more involved.

From "The Sacred Society," Chapter One in Work, Sex, and Money: Real Life on the Path of Mindfulness, forthcoming in 2011 from Shambhala Publications. Edited by Carolyn Rose Gimian and Sherab Chodzin Kohn.